The United States is getting closer to having a new domestic source for critical medical and industrial isotopes. Oklo Inc. recently announced that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) approved a key safety agreement for a new test reactor in Texas.

The project is called the Groves Isotopes Test Reactor. It’s being built by Atomic Alchemy, a company owned by Oklo, and it just passed a major regulatory hurdle known as the Nuclear Safety Design Agreement (NSDA). This means the DOE has signed off on the safety framework, allowing the team to move into the next phase of the project.

The Importance of the Reactor

Right now, the U.S. gets many of its isotopes, used for things like treating cancer, space exploration, and high-tech manufacturing, from aging facilities or suppliers overseas. This new plant in Lockhart, Texas, is designed to change that by creating a steady supply right here at home.

The reactor will be part of the “Proto-Town Innovation Hub,” a spot dedicated to testing new construction and energy tech. This is a way for the team to test their systems and figure out the best way to run these plants before building even more of them.

“With DOE’s approval, we are making meaningful progress in the development of this isotope facility,” said Jacob DeWitte, co-founder and CEO of Oklo. “This plant will help us gather critical data, refine our processes, and apply those lessons to subsequent licensing submissions and future deployments.”

The Plans For 2026

The DOE is using a specific “Reactor Pilot Program” to help projects like this move faster while keeping safety a priority. By working through this framework, the government hopes to expand the country’s industrial capacity and fix gaps in the supply chain.

“DOE is committed to a safety-first approach that enables disciplined progress from the drawing board through deployment-ready work,” said Robert Boston, Manager of the DOE Idaho Operations Office. “The NSDA approval for this radioisotope facility advances an authorization pathway that can strengthen domestic industrial capacity and support critical radioisotope supply chains.”

So, what’s next? Atomic Alchemy is aiming to have the facility up and running, a milestone called “criticality,” by July 4, 2026. For now, the team is busy preparing their detailed safety analysis for the next round of reviews.